CUTEST. BABY.EVER!

We got our monthly update for Eli today, and here is what it said:

He is 14lbs. and approx. 25 1/2 inches long. He is a happy and content baby who smiles a lot and is quiet most of the time. I think we hit the jack pot, don't you??!?
He is healthy except he has pink eye right now....poor baby. They are treating it and hopefully it will clear up quickly!

THIRTEEN DAYS until we leave to go get him - SO EXCITING!!

ELIJAH IS OURS!!!!!!!!!!!

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Tonight while we sleep.....

Tonight while we sleep, a judge in Ethiopia will look over our adoption case. If all goes well, and all is in place (including that letter from MOWA!), we will pass court and Elijah will legally (in Ethiopia)be our son. We hope and pray that is the case. We are trusting in God and His timing. We want things to happen in our own timing, but know that He knows best. This has been kind of a rough week for me as I have struggled to keep my eyes on Him and not fret about our court date. This time is a little harder because we have not passed court already.

If you are reading this on Sunday night, please take a moment to pray that all will go well and we will pass court tomorrow. I will post tomorrow when I know either way.

If we pass, you'll get to see his cute little face!!!

I waited patiently for the Lord;
he turned to me and heard my cry.
He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock and gave me firm place to stand.
He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord.
Psalm 40:1-3

About Ethiopia.......

Why Ethiopia?

Ethiopia is one of the five poorest countries in the world, with four out of every five people living on less than $2 a day.
Subsistence agriculture a way of life for 90 percent of its population and yet, despite the prominence of farming, agricultural production is low and extremely vulnerable with cyclical drought.
The country’s persistently low rainfall totals are a major factor in the extreme poverty that exists in rural areas as well as period famines that affect millions on people.
Ethiopia’s population has grown dramatically in the last several decades, from 33 million in 1983 to more than 75 million today. Many of the world’s poorest people live in rural areas of Ethiopia that face acute shortages of basic social and an almost nonexistent economic infrastructure.
For example, access to safe drinking water in Ethiopia is at critically low levels. Just one in three people have access to clean water while just 13 percent has access to adequate sanitation services.
Waterborne diseases claim the lives of hundreds of thousands of people each year. One Ethiopian child in 10 dies before their fifth birthday; half of those die from diarrhea.

from a Glimmer of Hope website

Is there room in YOUR heart......?

Tentative Travel Dates!!

We received tentative travel dates from our agency yesterday!! If we pass court on July 27 and all goes well, we will be in Africa from August 15-21 - probably actually traveling from the 14th-22nd.

This makes it so real - it feels so close, I can't believe it!! We have much to do before then and the nerves are beginning to kick in a little, so please pray for us. (well, me, my hubby doesn't really get worked up about much! :)

So excited!!

Change of Heart

Since we started this adoption process, I've had a change of heart.

You see, when we began this journey it was all about wanting to be a purposeful part of God's plan and fulfilling His mandate to care for orphans. We felt like this was a way God wanted to use our family and that He could use us to provide a home and opportunities to a child who had neither.
I still have a huge heart for orphans...I want to work on their behalf and make a difference for them. I am working in our church to start an orphan care and adoption ministry and am so excited to see what God is going to do with that. So, my heart has not changed for orphans.

But, it has changed towards this adoption. Our adoption is no longer about an orphan. It is about our child. Something has transformed in my heart....Elijah is no longer an orphan, he is just our child. He belongs to us. So, this adoption is now about bringing our child home...the child that was chosen for our family and planted in our hearts. Not about orphans.

Of course I realize that Elijah was an orphan and I guess technically is until we bring him home. But, the blessing is ours. We get to love and raise this child. He feels as much mine as our other children do. That, my friends, is the miracle of adoption.

New Court Date

Well, we have a new court date for Elijah!! It is July 27. We feel fortunate that we have been given a new date and that things seem to be moving along in the court system. This indicates that they do have a sense of urgency about getting these children home. Yay for that!! One little possible hitch - MOWA (remember them....the all important agency that needs to write us a recommendation letter to pass court!!) is closed until Friday, July 24, so that gives them ONE DAY to write their letter before our court date on the following Monday. This fact is what is leaving me cautious about getting too excited. Our agency has said, " MOWA begins work again on the 24^th so we very hopeful that everything should be in place for them to complete your recommendation letter by the 27^th." Here's hoping!

I want to be excited. I am not pessimistic, just cautious. Our agency says, "Prepare for the worst and hope for the best." I've heard this advice before...under many circumstances I would give it myself. But this is about a child. My child. I just don't know how to tell my heart to do that. I don't know how to walk the invisible line between hope and caution when it comes to my child and wanting him home. It's a tough road to walk.

So, until then, we will continue to prepare and gaze at our pictures and dream of what it will be like to have him home - and hope that day is coming sooner rather than later!!

More Information....

OK, so today has been a tough one. AND emotionally draining to say the least.

Here's the scoop: Most of you know that MOWA (ministry of women and children's affairs in Ethiopia) has not been writing letters of recommendation for abandoned children within the city of Addis. Elijah was abandoned in the city, so this has affected his case. Our family did not receive the letter from MOWA we needed to pass court.

GOOD NEWS: MOWA has agreed to begin writing letters for these cases. We anticipate receiving a letter the next time we have a court date.

BAD NEWS: We do not have a new court date and MOWA is closing until July 24 for training. (kind of an inopportune time if you ask me, but they didn't consult me!) There is a very small possibility that we will receive court date at the end of this week, but more than likely we will have to wait until after MOWA reopens to find out our new court date. We are still unsure if the courts will close in August like they usually do, which of course could affect our case as well.

Elijah is still ours. He will still be a part of our family in time. It is heartbreaking to think of him growing up without us. It seems senseless. I'm his mom and he doesn't even know me yet. That makes me so sad. However, I am thankful that our case will be resolved in time. I am hopeful for our future as a family and I still very much look forward to the day when we can bring him home!!
Thank you for praying for us.

Court

We did not pass court today. We were lacking one piece of important paperwork. Nothing more to say at this point.....we are just sad. Thank you for praying.

The Count Down is On!!

I made this widget at MyFlashFetish.com.

Testing

This is just a test to see if I can post from my email.....it appears that even the technologically challenged can sometimes figure this stuff out!!

Who knew....?!